18 September 2013

I
want to admire Mirko Bonné for the way he does what he does. It's
evident that he's not really enjoying the event, but he gets on with
it professionally, dealing with Claudia Voigt (Der
Spiegel)
and her questions patiently, courteously even. Doing events like
these are a necessary evil for Bonné
if he wants to hold on to the working conditions that he's earned for
himself, through which he can live as a full-time writer in the year
2013. Yet apart from giving a small number of writers an income out
of which they can write, it's hard to see who the event last Saturday
and other similar readings are meant to serve; and why we as an
audience should contribute to serving these people.